Shifting Cultivation and Environmental Change

Question: Discuss about the Shifting Cultivation and Environmental Change. Answer: Introduction: The increasing price of gas and oil and their rolling requirement in the Asia pacific region, and the rapid depletion of the reserve in the other OECD countries had made both the producing and consuming nations sensitive to the developments, which could challenge their place in the global scenario of energy (Zhao, Dahl, Luo 2015). According to few studies and researches, around 40 percent of oil and gas of world will be generated offshore by 2015. One of the OECD countries has recently discovered a large oil and natural gas reserve in a remote frontier territory. According to Esfahani, Mohaddes, Pesaran (2014) most of the OECD countries have always been dependant for their almost 50% of consumer an industrial needs on the local production system. The rest 50% has always been imported from other OECD countries or the Middle East countries, which had cost them a fortune considering the traditionally high bill of import. However, the recent discovery of the large oil and gas reserve h as given the government and the planner developers of the country a little relief. The discovery of gas and oil reserve can be profitable for the country in many ways, the lowering of the expense of the import of oil and gas being the first and the primary one. Also, the developments might have the potential to affect the global scenario of energy consumption, especially in the investment and the distribution of the technology and the gas and oil delivery resources in the global market (Mitchell Mitchell 2014). The Government has been deciding a few policies on the new found development in the country, since there might be a dual impact of it in the national scenario and global as well. The way the reduction of the import bill can get decreased because of the oil and gas reserve, an extra income from overseas can be cost effective through exportation of refined petrochemical and petroleum goods. However, that is a long way from now considering the coming problems. Although various sources have forecasted the potential benefits of the new found opportunity, the imp lementation of the pipeline for the shipment of crude to the refineries has concerned the authorities (Miller Sorrell 2014). It is approximately a 2000km pipeline, which will pass through largely unoccupied places, but it also runs through some heritage sites, places for worshiping and pilgrimage and some ancient habitats of native indigenous population of the country. However, their population is decreasing in high rates for past few decades, but there are some thousands of people, who still visit their heritage sites and holy places for festivals and other ceremonies. The Government has came up with a solution to this problem after months of discussion and conciliatory meetings, that they will relocate the sites and the few left accommodation in a new place or in a new city. In recent times, the indigenous people had an alarming number of decreases in their population because of several reasons like malnutrition, high infant mortality rates, and other hygiene issues (Cashin et al., 2014). Shifting to a new place can have a positive effect on that as well. The city life can offer proper education to their children and medical help to the older population. However, the social activist and the intellectual circle are absolutely against the relocation of indigenous people. Although the Government have to proceed with some steps to solve the issue and the relocation can be the best option for the up-gradation of native people. In that way both the parties can be benefitted and there will be new horizons of development in the country. The Age of Reason The recent discovery of the large reserve of gas and oil in the remote frontier territory of the country has brought many issues upfront. According to the developers and planner authority of the country, the discovery has brought a fortune for the further development, the native indigenous people might be suffering for it and they might have to relocate as the growth and enlargement as the development of the country cannot be hampered at any cost. The country has always been dependent for almost 50% of its petrochemical products on the other OECD countries and the Middle East (Cairns, 2015), therefore the recently found oil and gas reserve can be highly profitable for them, but at the same time the native people have to lose their century old heritage and pilgrimage at the cost of the development of the country (Cochran et al., 2013). After several discussion sessions with the major oil corporations regarding the essential future movements for the oil and gas reserve, the Government has planned to ship the rudimentary elements to the refineries with a billion dollar oil pipeline, which is almost 2000 km long (Gibson et al., 2015). However, most of the territory the pipeline is traversing is vacant and unoccupied and there are mostly forests, plains and deserts, but the route also runs through few historic sites, places for worshiping their ancient Gods, pilgrimage and age old settlements. The population of the native people has already decreased alarmingly in past because of several issues such as, malnutrition, high infant mortality, short life expectancy, hygiene issues. There are only few thousand of native people left in the country, because of those reasons. While the Government need to implement policies for the betterment of the indigenous population, they are destroying their ancient pilgrimages. However G overnment, along with the CEOs of leading oil corporations of the country have provided a solution to the problem, saying that they will relocate the religious and cultural sites with the housing accommodations to a new city. As the modern life has a lot to offer to native people, such as medical help, educational opportunities, many think that, this can be the best way out for them. However, several studies throughout the world have proved that more than 370 million native communities have moved into different cities and have always been treated like minorities (Kovach, 2015). The Government might provide them a roof on their head and other basic needs in a new city, but they cannot give them the respect they deserve in the eye of other people. Apart from these issues, their heritage and age old religious places are now at risk of being destroyed. However, the native people have been assured of the exact relocation of their religious and ancient places, but in any way that would not be possible. The Government is so keen to secure all the aspects in order to build the pipeline; they are creating a silent pressure on the native people for relocation. The oil corporations are more than excited because of the new discovery, as they can foresee the future expansion and growth in business and revenues and the future indeed looks brighter and the Government is backing their side as usual (Canessa, 2014). It is high time that the intellectual circle of the country to voice for the heritage and indigenous people, so that they do not get victimized because of the greed of lucrative future for some oil firms. The heritage must be protected and taken care of, not destroyed in the name of development. Reference List Cairns, M. (Ed.). 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